Nationwide, Kenya – A palpable wave of fear and uncertainty has swept across Kenya’s business community ahead of the Saba Saba Day protests, as shopkeepers in Nakuru, Eldoret, and other major towns take extraordinary measures to protect their livelihoods.

In a scene more reminiscent of wartime preparation than peaceful protest, many business owners have armed themselves with rungus, spears, and reinforced their storefronts with metal grills and barricades, bracing for potential looting and vandalism.

The national atmosphere remains tense and volatile, prompting widespread closures across commercial districts. While official lockdowns have limited movement, it is the deep-rooted fear of violence that has driven many traders to shut their doors—some indefinitely.

This stark reality stands in sharp contrast to earlier assurances by Deputy Inspector-General Gilbert Masengeli, who had claimed that commerce and transport would proceed without disruption. On the ground, however, images of shopkeepers brandishing crude weapons and businesses boarded shut paint a different picture: one of a community that feels exposed, abandoned, and on edge.

“It’s not that we want to fight,” said one shop owner in Nakuru, “but we have no one to protect us if things go bad.”

The contrast between government messaging and street-level reality has underscored a growing credibility gap—and laid bare the deepening sense of insecurity that is taking root across the country.

As Kenya prepares to mark a day historically tied to democratic struggle, the business community’s visible anxiety has become another symbol of the nation’s fragile state of trust, and the urgent need for a more credible, coordinated, and compassionate government response.